New LHS Crew Members
Our new Assistant Curator, Lucie Allen, is an art historian and curator focused on 19th-century decorative arts and culture. She is also a dedicated printmaker with over 6-years of experience. In May 2021, Lucie earned a BFA in Art History, with a Fine Arts minor in Drawing and Print Media, from Moore College of Art and Design in Philadelphia.
Lucie’s research and art often inform each other, and she believes that without an understanding of the method used to make an object, one cannot fully understand its value and function. This belief helped Lucie understand the difficult process of 19th-century wallpaper and textile manufacturing by reading about the techniques and learning how to print on a yardage table by hand. The ability to design and print a repeat, aids in her identification of techniques used on historic samples.
Lucie has been working with LHS on a part-time basis since 2020 as a research assistant. She has worked on exhibition development, cataloging and archiving projects, an installation guide for the Burton-Ingram House (c.1785), and the Ryves-Holt House wallpaper recreation project (c.1665). In addition to her research and curation work, Lucie is an active member of the LHS Interpretive team.
Lucie's current projects include the re-opening of the Family Learning Center and the "With a Splendid Breeze" Maritime Art Exhibition at the Lewes History Museum. Glad to have Lucie with us in a full-time capacity!
Our new Director of Interpretation, Ryan Schwartz, is a public historian who originally hails from Mukwonago, Wis. A 2014 graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, he has since devoted his career to education and historical interpretation, working for such institutions as the Rock County Historical Society, Wisconsin Historical Society, Children’s Theater of Madison, Philadelphia’s Museum of the American Revolution and, most recently, First State Heritage Park in Dover, Delaware. Ryan's first passion, lighthouses and maritime history, was sparked by Great Lakes travels with his grandfather, but he finds something fascinating in every period he delves to interpret. Since moving to the east coast in 2017, Ryan's focus has been on the late Colonial and Revolutionary periods, especially in regard to the Mid-Atlantic region.
As the Director of Interpretation, Ryan will create and lead all interpretive and living history programs at the Lewes Historical Society. Welcome aboard Ryan!
